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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

You and your family could be asylum seekers by this time next year.

477 replies

Nevermay · 14/08/2023 08:35

Just want to point this out, as many posters seem to be of the opinion that asylum seekers are a different species, with different aspirations, different hopes and fears, different medical biology, and different housing and nutritional requirements than the rest of humanity

It could be you and your family next year.

There could be any number of natural disasters in the UK. Meteor strike? Tsunami? Volcanic eruption? All of these are likely in the UK at some point. There could be manmade disasters, war, famine, there could be something more personal that happens to you, you could be a witness being searched for by a hostile government.

You might be a highly qualified professional, ( many asylum seekers in the UK are) you could have worked hard all your life to pay off your mortgage ( many asylum seekers in the UK have) you could have kept yourself fit and healthy all your life and you may also have an assortment of serious or trivial medical needs. You might have french or spanish GCSE to help you, or you might not.

None of these things will mark you out as special, or different, if you are in a crowd of asylum seekers seeking refuge in another country. You will just have to sit and wait and hope with everybody else, maybe for years, your children with you.

I really wish people understood this, refugees and asylum seekers are no different to our own population, some are uneducated, some are criminal, most are decent people, many are highly qualified and come from affluent and successful back grounds.

When ever you think and speak about them, please just keep in mind, this could be you next year.

OP posts:
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15
54isanopendoor · 14/08/2023 10:49

HowToSaveAWife · 14/08/2023 08:58

I'm a lapsed catholic but... There but for the grace of God go I. It is sheer luck where you are born, and into what circumstances. Could happen to any of us, particularly as a result of natural disasters.

It always baffles me that the staunchly anti-immigration are always the ones who are immensely proud of Britain's colonizing history and the resulting instability created by the Empire in other nations.

Also usually the same people who voted for Brexit and then went running for an Irish passport if they could.

Very well said @HowToSaveAWife
'there but for the grace of god / sheer dumb luck go ANY of us'

(and yes, I've noticed that nigel farage types seem to have some sort of cognitive blindness about modern 'immigration' & the UK's colonial past. often have a 2nd passport option / house abroad too. Go figure ...)

Tapasita · 14/08/2023 10:51

A volcano is not going to happen in the UK. Such hyperbole does not support a reasonable argument

DdraigGoch · 14/08/2023 10:51

frumpyflora · 14/08/2023 10:08

The UK is more likely to be affected by volcanic eruptions from other countries than from its own territory. In 2010, the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland caused disruption to air travel across Europe due to the ash cloud that spread over the continent. The UK was one of the most affected countries by this event, as many flights were cancelled or delayed for several days.

I'm not sure that the grounding of aviation is reason enough to flee the country.

TeleTropes · 14/08/2023 10:51

What astounded me was at the early stages of the Ukraine war, there was a lot of talk of how people would “move abroad” if a nuclear threat became imminent with no thought as to who would have them and that they would be refugees.

I’m a big believer that the best thing we can do is support asylum seekers into paid work (particularly where they were skilled in their previous countries) to get the best “economic benefit” from them. But that needs to be underpinned by doing the same for the British born and making the same services available to all. And vetting that those seeking asylum truly need it as otherwise it becomes a shortcut to a visa.

If I was in charge I’d have a distribution policy for migrants from the first safe country though. I can’t quite understand those who risk their lives leaving France, a western, first world EU country to come here. I do think we have an obligation to house a proportion of those in need though.

SWnewstart · 14/08/2023 10:55

I expect to be slated and deemed rascist, sexist or whatever but (like many of my family and friends) think the UK is in danger of being over-whelmed with migrants who appear to have an easier route to housing / benefits / general support etc than the huge numbers of struggling UK citizens. Is this fair?

As another poster said earlier, if you are genuinely fleeing your homeland then surely you'd be more than happy to take refuge in the nearest safe country. Why are so many hell-bent on travelling further to reach the UK? In relation to other european countries we're obviously a very small island - just how many more people do the "welcome all" brigade believe is sustainable before the true impact on our already over stretched resources bites?

I'll go get my hard hat on now but, even if my opinion is resoundingly rubbished, it is still permitted as free speech!

KarmaStar · 14/08/2023 10:56

Oh come on!of course people are welcome here ,those that are law abiding and want to work,to benefit to and from society.
The illegals who are vicious criminals,wanted in their own countries for rape,murder,trafficking,drug dealing who come here for free everything and to commit crime,you will welcome them into your home,with your children?
No I thought not.

frumpyflora · 14/08/2023 10:56

I'm not sure that the grounding of aviation is reason enough to flee the country.

Well, not by air anyway 😂

I just started looking into natural disasters in general... off on an ADHD tangent. Anything to delay work!

zingally · 14/08/2023 10:57

I completely agree.

There, but for the grace of god, go I.

berksandbeyond · 14/08/2023 10:57

and if it was, I’d be happy to settle in the first safe country 😊

3dogsandarabbit · 14/08/2023 10:58

Over the next 3 years the UK has agreed to pay France nearly half a Billion pounds to stop the small boat crossings. It's an absolute fucking joke.

Yalta · 14/08/2023 10:58

Apart from the fact that a natural disaster doesn’t make you an asylum seeker.

It could be you and your family next year

But if we look at the majority of asylum seekers we have it won’t be “you and your family” it will be the dh and adult ds’s only. Wives and children will remain on the war torn UK

Friend is married to an “asylum seeker” He was given leave to remain because he said that if he went back to his country, because of his political leanings he would be killed

Every year he spends 8 weeks visiting his parents and family back home.

Takoneko · 14/08/2023 10:59

Museya15 · 14/08/2023 09:37

Have you seen how tiny the UK is as opposed to USA, Australia, Canada, France?

Show quote history

Have you seen how huge the U.K. is compared to the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, Greece, Bangladesh, Lebanon, Jordan?

People talk about the U.K. being tiny as if we’re one of the smallest countries in the world. We’re in the top half not the bottom half by size.

Popeyewhereareyou · 14/08/2023 11:08

FancyFanny · 14/08/2023 10:13

The people that are arriving daily in the UK on boats and being housed on barges are not being given respect by the general British public because they are not asylum seekers. There are no natural disasters in the countries they are arriving from and Britain was not their first port of call. They are attempting illegal immigration, that is all.

Most people have genuine empathy and compassion to those seeking asylum here from Ukraine and other similar places and entering legally.

This

Badbudgeter · 14/08/2023 11:12

I can’t see it happening to be honest. Highly unlikely natural disasters due to Geography of the UK. Famine is possible as climate change takes hold and countries stop exporting food but I expect that’ll be much more gradual(and we will get better at mass produced algae burgers or other weird food stuff) and the rest of the world will be fucked too so no where to go.

War again we are a member of NATO so we will not find ourselves in the position of being invaded unless everything is FUBAR. In which case where would anyone go?

I can see a totalitarian state at some point but I recently watched v for vendetta so it might just be that.

anniegun · 14/08/2023 11:13

The complacency of some people on this thread is amazing. And the inhumane attitude to people trying to salvage something of their lives is depressing.

RosaGallica · 14/08/2023 11:16

To be fair - after a fashion - the op does specifically talk about rich young professionals wanting to come here. Those of us born poor and no inheritance to buy study time with, whether here or in other countries clearly don’t matter to her at all. Not to mention specifically poor young women, who have been told for the last few years that they should be grateful to have the option of prostitution open to them.

So I, those young women, or anyone paying private rent in Britain are excused caring them. We just get to work for the charity doled out by the rich here. Talking of which I bet Buckingham Palace would house quite a lot of migrants - the young well off males ones who are so valued, naturally.

SerafinasGoose · 14/08/2023 11:17

Jennygosoftly · 14/08/2023 10:06

If you're talking about Etna, then it isn't in the Bay of Naples.

Brian Cox is a professor of Particle Physics not a Vulcanologist. So maybe he doesn't know that the Trade Winds in that area would blow the ash East, away from us?

Show quote history

That would be Vesuvius.

As to asylum seekers, my village was in the national news last year because our prominent MP did his damndest to stop asylum seekers coming to our lovely local hotel. A great many weddings were held there, and there were numerous stories in the local media about couples angry that they'd lost their reception venue and others worried about criminal activity. The story was accompanied by the predicable angry response.

The refugees have now been there for the best part of a year, and the village hasn't heard a peep of trouble out of them. You'd not know they were here, other than seeing them making the mile or so walk between the hotel and the local co op with carrier bags.

theotherfossilsister · 14/08/2023 11:18

Excellent thread. Scary but true

KeepYaHeadUp · 14/08/2023 11:20

It's apparent that many people are completely naive when it comes to assessing possible risks we face here. The hundreds of plots and groups intercepted day to day. Threats from Russia, China to name a few. It might not be tsunamis or volcanoes but attacks which shut down our infrastructure - water supplies, power, etc. would bring us down faster than you imagine and given the selfish, "I'm alright Jack" mentality of lots of people here we'd turn on each other surprisingly quickly

ForTheLoveOfSleep · 14/08/2023 11:21

I have all the compassion and respect in the world for the individuals and families legally seeking asylum in the UK who are following the laws and procedures set out by the UK and EU governments to ensure that no threats to the UK are allowed to enter. I can only imagine the further injustice these people must feel when they see young men entering the UK illegally and being allowed to stay.
In most cases the Home Office has absolutely no idea who these "people in small boats" illegally entering the country are or their criminal histories.

Sunnydays41 · 14/08/2023 11:22

JaukiVexnoydi · 14/08/2023 09:04

We are very fortunate in the UK that the vast majority of those things couldn't actually happen here.

However the point is still valid because british people aren't qualitatively better or more deserving of comfort and security than those who are forced into thr position of being asylum seekers. They aren't any different from us just because of having been born in a country that is now unstable and unsafe.

There are 37 million refugees in the world out of a population of 7.8 billion (about half of one percent of the world's population)
The UK's "fair share" of that 37 million would be about 320,000 whereas in fact we have 230,000. As a prosperous nation with a culture of freedom and acceptance of diversity we should be doing more than our fair share, not less.

But you can't simplify the numbers like that based on population. You need to take into consideration land mass, available facilities, etc.

GlitchStitch · 14/08/2023 11:23

I have sympathy for genuine asylum seekers but where are the women and children? One of the first inhabitants of the Bibby Stockholm was interviewed last week and said he'd spent the last 6 months in a hotel. He was from Iran and had left his wife back there. I found that hard to fathom.

I'm also in a city where many young men are being housed in nearby hotels. Some areas have become no go areas for women, the sexual harassment is rife. No wonder people have limited compassion in some cases.

Exasperatednow · 14/08/2023 11:24

Yanbu
I've been on mumsnet a long time and it's capacity for compassion has diminished in the last few years.

I'm not sure why unless it's how the generation below me think and feel or its the impact of 13 years of conservative policies (and yes I voted for them once).

Exasperatednow · 14/08/2023 11:25

GlitchStitch · 14/08/2023 11:23

I have sympathy for genuine asylum seekers but where are the women and children? One of the first inhabitants of the Bibby Stockholm was interviewed last week and said he'd spent the last 6 months in a hotel. He was from Iran and had left his wife back there. I found that hard to fathom.

I'm also in a city where many young men are being housed in nearby hotels. Some areas have become no go areas for women, the sexual harassment is rife. No wonder people have limited compassion in some cases.

Maybe it's worth trying to understand why.
Dangerous, Ricky and unpredictable. Go ahead and try and set up a safe life to bring your family.

lljkk · 14/08/2023 11:26

We all have foreign passports so could go there.

I am intrigued about the process that would happen if UK just stopped immigration, even the skilled kind, in a bid to lower resident population. This is definitely the basis of a decent dystopian novel.

If you ever met someone foreign you wanted to marry, you'd have to immigrate to their country or elsewhere. So that would accelerate the population loss. Inward investment would plunge as the population aged (young people are more profitable). There would be a massive decline in public services.